BBWAA bans Dan Le Batard from Hall of Fame voting

Baseball writers' group revokes membership for year and rules he can't vote again after giving ballot away in protest

January 09, 2014|By Paul Sullivan, Tribune reporter

Miami Herald columnist and ESPN personality Dan Le Batard had his Baseball Writers' Association of America membership removed for one year Thursday after turning over his Hall of Fame vote to Deadspin.

The BBWAA, which the Hall of Fame uses to choose its members, also said Le Batard will not be allowed to vote again.

BBWAA President LaVelle E. Neal III said the association's constitution gave them the option to hand Le Batard a five-year ban.

"But to do that, we'd have to have to file for him to have an opportunity for a hearing," Neal said. "We decided we wanted to act quickly, so we came to the conclusion we'd pull his card for one year and ban him from voting for the Hall of Fame for life.

"There is a chance we could still pursue the five-year (ban) if we want to go through the process of having a hearing, but those things get so difficult (to conduct) with people so spread out."

The decision was made by the BBWAA board of directors, which includes Neal and five other members. Neal said they were in discussions over how to deal with the issue for eight hours Wednesday and a few more Thursday.

Le Batard gave his vote to the website to protest the voting process, which he claimed is "flawed." Deadspin polled its readers and submitted a ballot with their top 10 choices, then revealed Wednesday it was Le Batard's ballot they used.

Neal acknowledged there has been "been passionate reaction to Le Batard's actions and to our actions," but they believe the penalty was fair.

"I'm proud of the board for handling this situation as quick as they did, and we're very comfortable with our decision," he said.

There will be no ramifications against Le Batard's media outlets and Neal stressed Le Batard still could work at ballparks as long as the individual clubs issue him a credential. A BBWAA membership grants the card holder access to every major league stadium.

The Le Batard saga capped a newsworthy week for the BBWAA, which has been voting for the Hall of Fame since the museum began in 1936.

The BBWAA recently has come under fire for an electorate that includes dozens of voters who no longer attend games or closely follow the sport.

Voters are not required to reveal their ballots, so most of the 571 who voted in the 2014 election will remain anonymous.

Neal said while some voters "may not go to the ballpark as much as they used to, I'm convinced the overwhelming majority of voters take this job seriously."

One ballot was left blank, assuring no one would be a unanimous pick. Another voter left off Greg Maddux, reasoning Maddux played during the Steroid Era and would not be considered.

"A lot of people point to that — 'How can you kick out Le Batard when you don't address these guys?'" Neal said. "We may have to have a discussion about not using the ballot to make a statement. But at the same time, we want this to remain democratic and people to feel comfortable voting their conscience. So it's a fine line between those two actions."